You are ready for your Erasmus in Germany and you only wish to have everything under control. Here you will find the right directions through the logement jungle. Studentenwerk dorms are amongst the most wanted. Fortunately this detailed guide helps you to successfully apply and get your room. Here the steps to catch it:

Studentenwerk application

Open the Studentenwerk application web page (picture below). Click on “hier“, at the end of the text. You will be redirected to the official application form, (second image of the slideshow below). On the top right corner of the application form you can switch language from German to English. You can apply for a dorm at any time, no acceptance letter is needed.

  • Studentenwerk website
  • Studentenwerk application system

The most difficult part is right at this point. You have to chose which dorms suit you best. Given that as Erasmus you’d prefer not to look for furniture in a city that you don’t even know. It is better to chose a furnished (möbliert) room.

The next step is to chose the dorms based on these three points:

  1. Price
  2. Quality
  3. Distance (from your university)

It is suggested to invest some time to establish your maximum monthly price. Quantify your budget based on the total length of your stay and on your Eramsus grant. A very useful app for that is the Travel Spend App.

The dorms offer a great variety of features. Prices are different based on the structure, square meters, services, privacy standards, etc… Rooms may be private with private toilet and shower or they may have shared bathrooms. Normally kitchens are shared but you can also request to have a private kitchen. Don’t be surprised to share bathrooms and living areas, it is quite common in Kiel.

Given that your life quality standards must be personally chosen. Then, only the last point, distance, need to be answered. How? Consulting a map. Which map? The Ki-map! A map made by students for students. There you can easily find which dorms are closer to your university. If you still don’t want to check the distance manually here are some suggestions.

The nearest Studentenwerk dorms, if you are a CAU or a Muthesius Academy student, are:

  1. Kai-Uwe von Hassel Haus
  2. Professor-Anschütz-Haus (PAH)
  3. Neubau Bremer Straße
  4. Studentendorf Kiel

The nearest Studentenwerk dorms, if you are a Fachhochschule student, are:

  1. Wohnanlage Dietrichsdorf
  2. Professor-Anschütz-Haus (PAH)
  3. Neubau Bremer Straße
  4. Christian-Albrecht-Haus (CAH)

It is not suggested to select “All furnished” dorms in Kiel. You may end up very far from your university. For example, if you study in Fachhochshule and you end up in Dr.-Oetker-Haus (DOH), it may take quite a while every morning to get to university. Again, if you study at Fachhochschule, Kieler students suggest to rent a room on the “west-side” of the Kieler Fjord. This is because of the enjoyable life-style that the old city can offer.

Living on the “west-side” seems far from the Fachhochschule but it’s closer than you think. Schwentine Ferry takes off approximately every 45 minutes, bringing you to the “east-side” in less than 20 minutes. So, every morning you can also enjoy a little boat ride with spectacular views before your class. The ferries’ rides are included in your semester ticket. If you have a bike you can bring it on board.

  • Schwentine Ferry
  • Schwentine Ferry in Reventlou
  • Schwentine Ferry in the middle of the Kieler Fjord
  • Schwentine Ferry taking off from Dietrichsdorfer Brücke
  • View from the Schwentine Ferry

After selecting the dorms you’d prefer in the application, you just need to insert your personal data. Write some suggestions you would like Studentenwerk to know and upload your passport picture.

During the application, don’t panic if Studentenwerk asks for your bank details. The rent payment method is, in fact, automatically charged and detracted from your bank account each month.

Once you have sent your application, you will receive an email of confirmation from Studentenwerk summing up your details. From this email you will need to re-confirm your application by clicking on the link called “send confirmation”. If you don’t do that, your application will not be received and confirmed by Studentenwerk.

Once you have clicked on that link, you will get a second email with a PDF attachement called Bestätigung (Confirmation). The most mysterious thing is that the PDF states: “… rooms are distributed by lottery”. Don’t worry, it’s another Studentenwerk’s trick. It means that Studentenwerk is giving equal possibilities to all the students. Six weeks before the start of the semester a system assign rooms automatically to applicants. So, basically, applying before or later doesn’t strongly influence the room you will be assigned to.
Anyway, apply as soon as possible and before:

  • the 15th of July, for the Winter Semester
  • the 15th of January, for the Sprig Semester

If you are late, apply anyway. If you apply within four to six weeks before the start of the semester you still have a chance of getting a room.

“Clean and quite cozy as a matter of fact”

Minji, from South Korea, living in PAH

You will also get a third email with your log-in details. They are strictly useful for keeping your application active each month. Studentenwerk will send you a link every month. Click that link to keep your application active. If you forget to keep your application active, Studentenwerk will consider that you lost interest. Therefore, no room will be assigned to you.

If a room is available you will get a contract four to six weeks before the start of the semester. Sign it and send it back to Studentenwerk by email.

Once you finally get to Kiel, you will need to go to the Studentenwerk office in Kiel, at Westring 385, 24118.

It is mandatory to go there personally to sign your contract, confirming your presence in Kiel.

To find this office, you will need to enter in the main entrance, turn left (before the mensa), go up the stairs and turn right. Passed the glass door, the office is right on your right side. Opening hours in the picture on the left.

Once you sign your contract, they will give you a phone number. That’s the hausmaister’s phone of your dorm. The hausmaister is the person who will give you the keys of your room. You will need to call to plan a meeting with him/her. But!

Before meeting with your hausmaister, you will need to go to the Studentenwerk exagonal bar and pay your deposit. It is normally a 300€ deposit and it is mandatory to keep your ticket receipt, that confirms your payment. These money will be given back to you at the end of your stay, either by bank or by cash.

At the meeting with your hausmaister you will need to bring:

  • Passport photo
  • Signed contract (both by you and Studentenwerk)
  • Receipt of the 300€ deposit

During the meeting, your contract will be revised and signed again by you, the tenant. Some more general information about the dorm will be given. The hausmaister is the tech-person of your dorm. Remember to ask general questions like:

  • How does the internet connection works?
  • Do you need to give me LAN cables and key numbers to connect?
  • Is there a place where to lock bikes?
  • How not to make the fire alarm go off?
  • How to start the electrical cooking plates?

At the end of the meeting with the hausmaister you will finally have the keys in your hand. Your move-in officially starts.

“The neighbourhood is what I like the most”

Moufdi, from Algeria, living in PAH

The hausmaister is also the person who takes care of repairing everything in the dorm. If, once entered, something is missing or broken in your room, say it immediately to your hausmaister. Within two weeks everything can be replaced and repaired without charges for you, as new tenant. In order to know exactly what should be present in your room, read extensively your contract. If, at the end of your stay in Kiel, something is missing from your room, you will have to pay for it.

If you are not happy with your dorm room you can also make a request of moving out. Studentenwerk allows you to move within its own dorms. Use the “Moving” document form, found in the downloads section.

  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm
  • PAH Studentenwerk dorm

Your contract has dates of beginning and end. If you wish to leave your room before the end of your contract, you have to send a document to Studentenwerk. The “Termination Form” is in the downloads web page as well. Remember that it is mandatory to send the Termination Form three months before the day you want to be out of your room. If, for example, you want to get out of your room on the 30th of June, then the Termination Form needs to be in Studentenwerk’s hands before the 1st of April. The 1st of April is already too late.

“You have no way to choose your roommate”

Donja, from Iran

In the case that you are too late with the Termination Form, send it anyway and, in the meanwhile, find a new tenant. The next steps are: take good pictures of your room and place ads on these websites: WG-gesucht, E-bay-kleinanzeige or Wohnungsmarkt kiel. In any case, since you get out of your room before the end of your contract, even if you find a new tenant, you will have to pay a fee of 35€.

All this process is long but safe. When coming to Kiel, be aware that there are usually more applicants than rooms available. There is a slight chance that you will not have a room at all. Anyway, Studentenwerk has approximately ten huge students’ dorms in Kiel and have a great availability. The only risk is the large amount of applicants every new year. But, even this problem can be easily overcome: the solution is right in the interactive map below.

Ki-map

As a solution, many other private institutions offer logements in Kiel. With this map you have the opportunity to easily find them all. Just use the first section of the map called: “1. Students’ dorms”.